Description
Telegram is a messaging app with a focus on speed and security. It’s superfast, simple, secure and free.

Telegram is a secure messenger that you can switch to without having to say goodbye to any of your favorite features.

With Telegram, you can create group chats with up to 100 people so you can stay connected with everyone at once. Plus, you can share videos up to 1GB, send multiple photos from the web, and forward any media you receive in an instant. All your messages are in the cloud, so you can easily access them from any of your devices.

We built Telegram to make messaging safe again so you can take back your right to privacy.

Why Switch to Telegram?

FAST: Telegram is the fastest messaging app on the market because it uses a decentralized infrastructure with data centers positioned around the globe to connect people to the closest possible server.

SECURE: Security flaws in popular apps like WhatsApp have gotten a lot of bad press recently, so we made it our mission to provide the best security on the market.

Telegram, which works across multiple devices and platforms (Android, iOS, Windows Phone, Firefox OS, Windows, OS X, Linux) has officially released its web-version with support for usernames.
Be warned that it still needs some work to run without issues.

Good to see alternatives. I can't call it a replacement though for as long as those whom I know still choose to use Whatsapp. This is one case where I wish but find it difficult to break free from the crowd.

Link Previews
All links to tweets, Instagram photos and YouTube videos will now be beautifully rendered so that you’ll see what the link is all about before opening it.

Active Sessions
The Active Sessions screen, on the Privacy and Security settings, shows all your logged in devices allowing you to close any sessions that are outdated or suspicious.

Two-Step Verification
Another addition to the Privacy and Security section is Two Step Verification. It allows you to set up a password that will be required every time you log into your account from a new device – in addition to the code you get in the SMS.

Be careful though: if you forget this password, you won't be able to access your messages from other devices. We recommend setting up a recovery e-mail or at least a hint for your password, if you decide to turn on Two Step Verification.